Updated

Dec. 11,

2012

N= a new topic or
question. "New topic" or "new question" means it wasn't used in
May-August 2012. (Some of these "new" topics seem to be repeats of
previous topics that were used months or years ago.) If a topic is new then
all the questions are "new", even if some of those questions have been used
in previous tests.

Topics without

N are topics that are continuing from the May-August Part 1 set
of part 1 topics. Usually the questions will be the same in the Sep-Dec
period but I might find some new questions. If that happens, I will label
the question as

N.

I don't label the topic of Work/Studies
as new because it is always in the test. Some of the questions continue from
the previous 4-month testing period but you can assume that there will also
be some new questions at each test change time (January, May & September)
When I find such new questions, I label them as

N.

Similar to the

Work/Studies topic, either one of the
topics Hometown and Home is always in the test. Usually both
are in the test at the same time but there have been rare times when only
one of them is used for a 4-month testing period.

Some of the questions continue from the
previous 4-month testing period but you can assume that there will also be
some new questions at each test change time (January, May & September) When
I find such new questions, I label them as

N.

Many of the questions have the words,
"(Why?/Why not?)" written in the examiner's question book after the
question. I have not always shown that here but you should include this information
when you answer any questions about your preferences, opinions, likes and
dislikes or any other answer that obviously needs you to state a reason
for a complete, coherent answer. If you do not, the examiner will ask you "Why?" or, "Why
not?". If
the examiner is forced to ask that several times, you will be losing valuable time
and you will not give a good impression.

* = A question that I have guessed is in
the test OR a question that seems to exist but which has not been
reported clearly so I have guessed the wording.

"Similar to above" means the wording of the
question is not clear. You might get one of those questions in any group
that includes "Similar to above" but not more
than one of them.

One
of the three topics above is a compulsory topic and you will be asked about 4
questions on this topic. You will then be asked questions on two of the topics
from below. (Again, about 4 questions per topic).

Note:For
high school students or recent high school graduates who have not yet started
university, the word "school" or the words, "high school" or
"secondary school" will be used instead of "university". If
you are no longer a student now and have not yet started to work, the questions
will be about the last time you were a student, either high school or
university, and the questions will be asked in the past tense. For high school
students (or recent high school graduates), the word "subjects"
(plural) will be used.

Make sure you know the differences between "sport" and
"exercise".It is possible that in some of the questions below, the
word "sport" should be the word, "exercise".

Do you like sport?

What sports have you played?

What sports are popular in your
country?

Is there any sport you would like to
try? (Why?/Why not? If yes, what sport?) (= a sport you have never played)

What do you think are the benefits of
playing sport?

Questions on this topic
from May-August, 2012

Do you like sport?

Did you play any sport when you were a child?

(Similar to above)

Did you like sport when you were a child?

What sports do young people (or, children) like to do?

(Similar to above) What sports do you think
are suitable for children to play?

(Possible question) Do old people and young
people like to do (or, play) the same sports?

What sports are most popular in your country?

What sports do old people like to do?

How much time do you have for exercise?

Do you do any
exercise to keep fit or healthy?

(Possibly if you say "No" to
the question above) Do you plan
to do any exercise in the future?

Is there any sport that you have never played
that you would like to try (or, to learn)?

(Possibly the above question is this)
Is there any form of exercise that you would like to try in the future?

Do you think everybody
should do some exercise? (Why?)

Do you think exercise
is beneficial for older people?

What do you think are
the benefits of exercise?

16.

Shopping

See also ALL_PART_1_QUESTIONS
34. Shopping.
Possibly there is no separate "Shopping" topic and, instead, there are one or
two questions about shopping in either the "Internet" topic or the "Clothes and
Fashion" topic.

Do you prefer
to spend time with your family or with your friends? (Why?)

Which do you
think is more important, your family or your friends? (Why?)

Are there any
times when you prefer to be alone?

19.

Your Parents(Unconfirmed topic)

Usually when the topic of
your family is being introduced, the examiner will first say something like, "Now
I'd like to ask you some questions about your family (or, your parents). Is that
OK?" The examiner is asking for permission to ask you questions on
this topic. This is because some candidates might be sensitive about this
topic, for example, if their parents are divorced. In my opinion, if this is a
real topic and if the two reported questions below are real questions, then you
should tell the examiner that you would prefer not to answer these
questions. (You won't have to give the examiner a reason for saying that.) This
is because, in my opinion, the two questions below are too intrusive,
侵入,
(intrusive upon your privacy). Don't forget, the IELTS test is administered by the British
Council, an agency of a foreign government. On the other hand, the questions in
the topic of "Relatives" are not so intrusive.

For the question about
'your first school', it would be acceptable to talk about kindergarten (if
you can remember much about it) and if you did learn things there. However,
some Westerners don't think of kindergarten as an example of a "school".
Instead, they think of it as more like a "day care centre" or a "pre-school
centre".

What was the
first school you attended?

(Similar to
above) Do you remember the first school you attended?

Where was it?

Was it far from
your home?

How did you go
to (or, travel to) school?

Did you like
it?

What were the
good things about that school?

(Similar to
above) What did you like most about it?

What did you
learn there (or, what did you do there)?

Would you say
it was a good school?

Would you send
your child to that school today?

Have you been
back to that school for a visit?

What different types of schools have you been to?

Which school did
you like the most? (Why?)

Did your parents choose your secondary school (= high school)
for you?

26.

Toys

Did you like to play with toys when you were
a child?

What toys did you play with?

What do you think are the benefits of playing
with toys?

Do you think you learned anything from
playing with toys?

Did you (prefer to) play with those toys
alone or with other children?

If you had children, what toys would you give them?

(Similar to above) If you had to choosea toy for a child, what toy would you give them?
See
Note